Infant carriers are well known, and many different models are presently available. For example, the following U.S. patents all disclose infant carriers: U.S. Pat. No. 4,688,850, by Brownlie et al., issued Aug. 25, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,368, by Heath et al., issued July 21, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,177, by Meeker, issued Jan. 6, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,806, by McDonald et al., issued May 14, 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 4,501,032, by Heath et al., issued Feb. 26, 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,206, by Johnson, Jr., issued Feb. 1, 1983; U.S. Pat. No. 3,409,325, by Hamilton et al., issued Nov. 5, 1968; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,334,944, by Gould et al., issued Aug. 8, 1967.
One of the more important features an infant carrier can provide is ease of transportation. For this reason the vast majority of infant carriers include a handle by which they can be carried. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,681,368 and 4,501,032 disclose bassinets which can be carried by dual handles. However, as is readily apparent from the figures for these patents, the shape of these dual handles makes it unwieldy to grasp both handles simultaneously, especially for those with small hands. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have dual handles that can be easily grasped. It would also be desirable to have an infant carrier which can be carried in a manner other than by the handles, for example, cradled in one's arms.
Another important requirement for infant carriers is that they are stable when placed upon a flat surface. To this end, some infant carriers have been provided with bases, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,634,177 and 4,516,806. However, the shapes of these bases are unwieldy. Therefore, the base is commonly removed when the infant carrier is transported, or, if left attached to the carrier body, the base makes it difficult for one to carry the infant carrier cradled in one's arms. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a base which provides stable support when the infant carrier is placed on a flat surface, yet which does not interfere when the infant carrier is being carried.
In addition to functioning as a simple carrier, it is advantageous for an infant carrier to perform other tasks. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,409,325 and 3,334,944 disclose infant carriers in which the head can be raised, thereby allowing an infant to be fed while in an upright position. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,688,850 and 4,371,206 disclose carriers which can also function as rockers. While the soothing effect of a rocking motion on infants is well known, rockers sometimes suffer from the disadvantage of poor stability. Additionally, they usually require an external touch to activate the rocking motion.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide an infant carrier that is positionable in a number of configurations, such as a resting configuration, a feeding configuration, etc. It would also be desirable if in one of the configurations the infant carrier is both stable and capable of soothing motion. It would be especially advantageous if this motion can be triggered by the infant's own movement.